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Sunday, January 31, 2010

Fradoo ABC (Special) Gerai 14 in Section 2 Shah Alam is a Shah Alam institution. Maybe you think I am exaggerating a bit but those who ever stayed in Shah Alam or had the honor to taste this masterpiece will also agree with me. When it is hot day and I feel like having something cool and got cash to burn, ABC Fradoo is the ticket.

It has been already announced since the new year that Fradoo ABC will hike up their Fradoo ABC Koko Special price from RM 2.50 to RM 3.00 due to rising cost. So, the wife & I went for a quick dash to Fradoo ABC.

She's peeved cos' I'm snapping a picture of Fradoo instead...

We ordered two Fradoo ABC Koko Specials and another two for the road. Thankfully, we came just before the rush hour for this ABC (rush hour starts at 5). So, the wait was not that long. Finally, our order arrived and voilla....

Twin terrors of sweetness

Fradoo ABC Koko Special is made up of shredded ice, red beans, cendol, peanuts, cincau, nata de coco, red syrup (or called tomato ketchup), yellow syrup (called mustard) and green syrup. What makes this dessert special is the secret recipe melted chocolate poured on top of the ice and. Topping it all off is piece of fruit and a wafer tube.

ABC Fradoo Koko Special

The preparation is clean as the Fradoo ABC employees wear plastic gloves and always wash the ice down and always make sure the ingredients are fresh.

Let me throw in the pictures because my words would not do justice to this masterpiece.

Not a single word came out of her when devouring this masterpiece

After finishing off our ABCs, we paid and collected the two take-away orders. Fradoo ABC again hit the spot. Even though, it will cost us a bit more starting 1st February, we will surely be devoted fans of this dessert masterpiece.

Saturday, January 30, 2010

The other day the missus and I finally got the chance to try out the latest food joint that is the buzz in lil' old Bandar Baru Bangi, Austin Steak House. I have been hearing about this place and its fantastic food from my sister in law, Kak Ayu. So, on our way back to Shah Alam after visiting the in-laws (Azhani's parents), we had a quick pit stop at Austin Steak House.

Austin Steak House

You can't miss the place as the bright "AUSTIN STEAK HOUSE" signage can be seen far away. We got there before 8 o'clock as advised by Kak Ayu. She said the place would pick up pace after 8. She was right. Once we landed our bums and a few minutes passed by, people started to fill up the place. By the way, parking space is easy enough, so no problem there.

The crowd starts to pack Austin

The ambiance of Austin Steak House is based on a western themed eating joint. Horse cart wheels on the ceiling, bottles on the shelves and wooden furniture used absolutely makes you feel like you are in a old western tavern. A good start to a potentially fine dining experience.

On to the food. Azhani ordered the Chicken Courdon Blue. This dish consists of a piece of deep fried chicken with cheese stuffed into the chicken served with a rich portion of thick and tasty gravy with pieces of chopped button mushrooms. A handful of crinkle cut french fries and coleslaw put into a fresh piece of lettuce finished this dish.

The price for this tasty dish is RM 10.90.

Austin Steak House's Chicken Cordon Blue

I on the other hand ordered the all time western food favourite, chicken chop or in this case Austin Steakhouse Special Chicken Chop. The price also might have influenced me a bit as it was only RM 8.90.

Austin Steak House Special Chicken Chop

The dish is made up of a big piece of deep fried chicken smothered with a very generous portion of thick gravy with pieces of button mushrooms. Again, a handful of crinkle cut french fries and coleslaw. The grave really complimented the chicken well. Two thumbs up from me.

mouth watering Austin Steak House Chicken Chop

Both of us ordered different drinks. Azhani ordered the Milo Ice and I had the Lemonade or Limau Ais. The big glasses used reminds me of the huge glasses served at William SS2 PJ. Both drinks are priced at RM 2 each. Other drinks on the menu were fruit juices like apple, watermelon, honeydew and the usual fruit juices. They are priced at RM 2.50 and are also served in those huge glasses.

Ice Lemonade and Iced Milo

Other dishes on the menu that I will surely try when I get the chance to go to Austin again will be the Salmon, Lamb Chop or even the Sizzling Steak. This won't do any good to my ever expanding waistline. But it is hard to resist the charm and temptations on offer at Austin Steak House.

Thursday, January 28, 2010

I'm so gonna get fired for putting an extra piece of lettuce in that Big Mac

McDonald's had to pay a former employee in one of its Dutch outlets after firing her for putting an extra slice of cheese in a workmate's burger during that friend's lunch break. The courts decided that she was wrongly dismissed and Micky Dees were ordered to pay the remaining 5 months of her contract which was around 6,000 Dollars and also court fees.

McDonald's defended their actions that she had broken the rules that forbids employees to give gifts and free stuff to family members and friends.

Kinda funny that a Big Mac (no pun intended...not!) of a company like McDonalds can get worked up because of an extra piece of food but doesn't mind being robbed gallonf of Coke refills everyday.

Saturday, January 23, 2010

The other day some people from an Islamic bank came to my office and gave a talk on personal financing and loans. Credit cards were also mentioned. Some of the younger staffs started to sat up a bit when it came to the credit card talk and were immediately impressed with what was on offer.I think they applied for the cards soon after that.

What I was interested was "why did you guys select that bank's credit card?". The answer that I got was, it sound good and its my first credit card. Well, not really a solid reason to have a credit card.

So, why do you need a credit card. I myself hold a few cards. Each has its own purpose. Groceries (card have special rebates at ALL hypermarkets), entertainment (rebates and also "buy 1 ticket, get 1 ticket free"), bills (again rebates) and petrol (rebates).

an example of a petrol rebate scheme from a bank

From the statement above, you can see that I use cards in terms of savings. And yup, I pay my credit cards in full every month. Some might say, better not use credit cards if paying full each time. But for the past 3 years, I've saved a bundle through rebates and offers. It is a an important tool in my finances.

The Government's decision to put a RM 50 service tax on each credit cards has somehow reduced the need to have too many cards. I am planning to terminate a few. But still, they are an important in my financial plannings.

Thursday, January 21, 2010

I was shocked to hear that Port Au Prince, the capital city of Haiti were further rocked by a 5.9 Richter scaled aftershock early Wednesday, after the original 7.3 shock 8 days ago.The latest shakes created fear of further destruction and casualties to the already grief stricken country.

It was mentioned that more building structures that had already been weakened in the original earthquake had collapsed and it is feared that any survivors that might be still alive under the rubble of the original quake would be in danger. Nurses in hospitals in the capital mentioned that patients had started to ask for forgiveness and prayed hard when the aftershocks started.

The Haitian Government had confirmed that the death toll is now at 72,000 and is estimated that this number would rise to almost 200,000 people. Search, rescue and recovery efforts are still being carried out throughout Port Au Prince. This is evident in the recovery of a few people from under the rubbles after 5 or 6 days.

Regarding to the help and supplies intended to the people, supplies are starting to get to them. However, bottlenecks and mismanagement of aids and supplies have hindered the efforts to get these supplies to the hands of Haitians.

Volunteers at the Red Cross packing supplies and aid for the Haitian Earthquake victims

Fellow bloggers and Malaysians that want to contribute to the Malaysian Haiti Fund can do so through these channels:

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Lately, my wife have been craving for KFC, well in particular the KFC Zinger Tower Burger. The older generation always say to try meet those pregnant woman cravings as long as they are reasonable. Well, KFC is reasonable enough except when it is craved on a daily basis. Kopak wooo..

So, last weekend during our weekly dating nights my wife bought me my first KFC Tower Zinger (after telling me for the whole week how she loved the burger). Lets just say when I go to KFC, burgers are the last thing I think of having. Well, I'll make an exception for her sake.

We had the Zinger Tower Combo. When you pay RM 10.50 for the Zinger Tower Crunch Combo meal, you will get the Zinger Tower Burger, 7 UP Revive and Chacho's corn chips with dip. I love chips and dips. Hey, they rhyme.

Zinger Tower being a little shy

The KFC Zinger Tower Burger is made of fresh lettuce, zinger chicken fillet, cheese, hash browns, zesty chili lime sauce with two soft sesame buns. This Zinger Tower somewhat changed my opinion on KFC burgers. The hash brown crumbled when you bite into it, the zinger fillet is juicy and just about right. The zesty lime sauce made it all come together.

The Zinger Tower is about to be devoured by a champion

My wife couldn't make the whole burger to fit her mouth. So, she divided it into two pieces. Well, for me being a burger & sandwich lover, took the whole burger in one piece and savoured the taste. Champion.

Eventhough KFC still cannot overtake the other burger establishments in the burger/sandwich stakes, the Zinger Tower shows me that they are in the right direction.

Friday, January 15, 2010

I finally got the chance to watch the most talked about movie in town, Avatar The Movie. Various reviews and comments have been made about this sci-fi movie directed by James Cameron. He was also responsible for Titanic being the largest grossing movie in history. So, I won't go into detail about the movie.

If an animated CGI movie was ever get hooked on cocaine, steroids and heroine, then Avatar The Movie is it. A modest and intriguing storyline with a well written script. The CGI and animation is out of this world.

I won't mind to sit for another screening. This time I might try the 3D version. Definitely the best movie of 2009.

Thursday, January 14, 2010

I won this beauty at The Tune Group 1st Inaugural Annual Dinner held at Modestos Hartamas last Friday. I am working with Tune Talk (www.tunetalk.com), so that explains me being there in the first place.There were 120 prizes on offer for the 130 Tune Group staff that attended the dinner. I was gunning for 1 of the 3 notebooks on offer, or even the iPhone 3GS. Heck, if I get the 50 inch LCD TV, I won't be complaining. Duhh..

But I knew somehow I will get this Lotus 38 car. Let me tell you a bit about this car.

There are only 1,200 pieces of this model made in the whole world. So, I feel a bit special because I am one of those lucky people. It's currently worth almost RM 2,000 and if I keep it in good condition, I can get more through auctioning it. It's apparently a collectors item.

This prize was given by the Lotus F1 Team Malaysia people. They were also there at the dinner as the team is also a part of the Tune Group Family headed by Dato Seri Tony Fernandez. He was also there during the dinner.